


Super Kiddo

by BerryPicker



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:07:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 16,632
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27360037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BerryPicker/pseuds/BerryPicker
Summary: An alien threatens earth. A teenager rebels. A very frustrated DEO agent wonders why she ever thought she wanted kids.
Kudos: 15





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A retelling of Season 3 with a focus on the impact on Ruby Arias. Author chose to age up the Ruby character to make her more interesting to write, so this Ruby is a few years older than the Original Character Ruby (and way cooler, too.)

Kara answers the door to some late arrivals to her Christmas party. Lena’s friend Sam in a manic state with an exasperated teenage girl in tow. “Oh, you didn’t dress up?” says a mildly disappointed Kara. The girl, brusquely introduced as “my Christmas hating daughter Ruby”, is dressed in the style of a Goth, with heavy black makeup, wearing eclectic metallic green and red clothes in an ironic nod to the season. Sam is dressed as though she came straight from the office. “Sorry” she says out of breath, “I- WE- had to get the cookies…” Ruby unceremoniously hands over a bakery box to Kara, addressing her while glaring at her mother. “It wouldn’t be Christmas without artisanal cookies, we couldn’t save time and effort by just bringing normal cookies. That would be insufficient”. Kara graciously accepts the box, peering and sniffing inside while she places it with the rest of the food, making space for it as though it deserved a place of honour. “Not a fan of the holiday?” Kara asks with empathetic kindness. Ruby accepts this as an invitation to rant about the artifice around Christmas as well as the materialism and insincerity of it all. 

  
Sam hisses at her to “drop it” as she leads her further into the loft to make formal introductions. Lena is over solicitous and gushes about how smart and pretty Ruby is in spite of her efforts to conceal it from the world. She is rewarded with an eye roll and an evasive maneuver to avoid her hug attempt. Sam accepts Lena’s hug eagerly and sighs loudly as though she has returned from war. Lena releases her but they keep one arm slung supportively around the other’s waist. “How did you get her to agree to come?” Lena asks in an incredulous stage whisper. “Bribes and threats” Sam replies. Ruby continues to scowl at the unwanted attention. 

  
“Well, your favourite _wunderkid_ just got herself suspended for hacking.” Lena gasps and the rest of the adults all turn their attention to a now blushing Ruby. “It was bullshit. I was exposing an inappropriate relationship between a teacher and a student. I needed their emails…..and some school surveillance footage….” she trails off. Winn asks if she used a VPN. Ruby replied that she was using the school library account but got caught because she attracted too much attention “because they know you never visit the library” her annoyed mother finishes. Winn advised that next time she should plan better to make sure she covers her tracks. Ruby complained that it would have been fine if the librarian hadn’t been such a _narc_ and then continued to complain that she was doing the right thing by exposing corruption and protecting students, and it was all just a big cover-up by the school, and that's what you get for trying to do the right thing. Sam again implores Ruby to “give it a rest” to which Ruby defensively replied that “he seemed interested?!?”. Lena diplomatically leads Sam over to the drink station to head off what appears to be a continuation of a never ending conflict. “VPNs are your friend” Winn mouths to her before he too, moves away from the conversation.

  
M’rynn is watching in fascination while J’onn explains that Ruby is at an age where human children typically test the boundaries of their relationship with their parents as a part of gaining independence. “Fazzinating!” M’yrnn observes. J’onn assures that it rarely comes to physical battles in this modern age.

  
All the assembled guests can relate to Ruby’s seasonal melancholy, and take turns discussing how their respective childhood Christmases were forever marred by the death their fathers, the incarceration of Winn’s and his placement into care, Kara’s inability to connect with her foster parents and Lena’s loneliness. “Well, this is festive” intones Ruby. “Cool it” slurs Sam in her general direction. 

  
Alex sidles over and tries not to smile at yet another sullen eye roll. She tries instead to ask Ruby about her t-shirt. “That’s a tour shirt” she tries. Ruby shrugs indifferently. “Did you actually catch them on tour?” Ruby shakes her head no. “Did you get it in a record store?” Ruby turns to look at her finally and barks out “what are you? A cop?”. Alex snorts a laugh and catches James and Winn enjoying this exchange as well. “No.” Alex smoothly lies “it’s just that it is a band that most people have never heard of….and they don’t normally tour…so your shirt is actually quite rare. I thought it might have sentimental value or something.” Ruby simply shakes her head _no_ again. “It’s just a shirt…I needed something green.” she finishes lamely. “Hmm” Alex says by way of understanding. She also leads Ruby over to the drink station.

  
Sam is slightly flushed and swilling whatever is left in her tumbler. Ruby avoids any interaction and instead smells the lid of a Root Beer Schnapps bottle. “You can’t have that” Alex Who Is Not a Cop states. “Why not? I like Root Beer…” Ruby tries innocently. “Why do you even have this?” Alex challenges Kara who has come over to play hostess and refill Sam’s glass. “It was left over from a party” she responds defensively. Sam thanks Kara for the refill and nods appreciatively when Ruby is supplied with some hot chocolate. The alcohol buzz had not softened Sam’s mood but has loosened her tongue. “Did she tell you that she now has to go to summer school for chemistry?” “What? She was doing so well in that class!” Lena responds in shock. “Does she need a tutor? I can help with that…” Ruby looks appalled at that suggestion. “Nope” Sam smirks into her glass. “She got caught cheating and now has to repeat the whole semester…” All the women look at each other in surprise. Alex is intrigued as she retrieves the Schnapps bottle from Ruby who is reading the label. Lena looks confused and Kara looks disappointed, in spite of only knowing this young girl for minutes. 

  
“It wasn’t exactly cheating” Ruby supplies to Sam’s derisive snort. Ruby takes a quick breath to calm her annoyance at her mother and then proceeds to explain how she was merely trying to prove gender bias in her chemistry class, as the instructor was consistently giving the female students lower test scores and letter grades on their lab reports. Ruby had devised her own experiment of changing the names on assignments or submitting work that was verbatim that of her male classmates to see what the impact would be on the marks. She inevitably got caught and was now accused of cheating. “Because you cheated!” a frustrated Sam exploded. “What you just described doing is literally called cheating!”. “No,” a defeated Ruby replied. “What I did was fight the system but the system won.” “My hero!” Lena gushed trying to diffuse the rising tension. “Always on the side of the underdog!” she beamed affectionately at Ruby. 

  
Kara smiles kindly at her. “That took courage and ingenuity. You should seriously consider being an investigative journalist.” Ruby scoffed derisively and whispered " _lame_!”. Alex snorts into her scotch glass and Kara pretends her mildly wounded pride is not fully visible. “Why chemistry?” Alex tries to redirect the conversation to safer subjects. “You can take easier subjects. Why do you want to take it and why are you even trying to repeat it if you don’t need it to graduate?” “She wants to be an astronaut….” Sam answers for her. Ruby is not baited or deterred by her mother’s lack of enthusiasm and lights up for the first time that evening. “It’s true” she admits somewhat shyly. “They don’t accept many women into the space program. You need to be an elite athlete, and have a science degree and a career in the armed forces or air force…” “You HATE authority!” Sam drunkenly cackles at this. “She hates abuse of authority” Lena soothes “and I have no doubt she will wind up doing great things!” Ruby ignores them both. “Can you believe it, though? There will actually be a successful Mars mission in our lifetime! Just think, we will finally learn whether there was ever life on Mars!” Ruby turns abruptly at the laughter coming from the assembled men near the television set. They suddenly pretend to be discussing something else but Ruby still feels the sting of their ridicule. 

  
“You’ve done a great job with her” Lena reassures. Sam looks whimsically at Ruby who has now moved away to pretend to look at Kara’s artwork and avoid the adults altogether. “Truth…I’ve been more friend than parent…it worries me when she acts out like this”. “All kids need are one good parent who loves them…” is Alex’s advice. “They are born with everything they need to survive and can turn out brilliantly resilient" she looks at Kara while saying this and J’onn raises a silent toast at Winn.

  
The hours pass and Ruby has learned Playstation cheats from Winn, was fascinated by a (Martian) magic trick by M’rynn, beat James horribly at cards, and is the front seat of Alex’s borrowed ride who is driving them all home. “Thanks” she offers quietly. “You’re welcome” comes the response. “When you get older you can be her designated driver”. Ruby laughs at that quietly and turns to look at the sleepy adults in the bench seats who had too much cheer. Alex finds a song from the band on Ruby’s shirt and it quietly fills the comfortable space around them. This was definitely better than being chauffeured home in Lena’s town car.


	2. Chapter 2

Weeks go by before Ruby resorts to speaking with Lena. She can’t find Sam anywhere and she is worryingly overdue. Lena gets a hold of Kara at work and confirms that there has been no sign of her. “Did you check her phones?” Lena says in lieu of ‘ _hello_ ’ when Ruby opens the door for her. “Her phone-wallet-keys are all gone and she is not answering.” Lena is on her phone instantly with some unknown person while she walks away from Ruby, who still hears the fear in her voice “…NEVER leave Ruby like this!”

Not long after that Alex comes by to search the home, which she assures Ruby is the normal first step in any missing person case, ' _she shouldn’t be too concerned'_. Ruby is not reassured as she overhears Lena and Alex debating all the possibilities. Is it possible that she is having a fling? Is she injured? Would she have any enemies? What haven’t they thought of? By then Kara comes in out of breath and seems equally relieved to see Alex already there while concerned about Lena who is looking more upset by the minute. “She hasn’t been in for most of the week. We just assumed she was out at client meetings or working from home” she eyes Ruby while saying this, who feels the silent implication that Sam’s challenges as a single working mother are somehow behind this.

Ruby notices Alex heading upstairs to check on the bedrooms and decides that she has had enough of their intrusion. She stomps up behind Alex and takes her mother’s hairbrush from her, placing it carefully back where it was. “What are you even looking for?” she demands. “Signs of whether this was a planned absence” Alex carefully answers, not wanting to give too much away. “I thought you weren’t a cop?” “FBI” Alex smirks at her. Ruby tries and fails to not look impressed. Ruby then confides to Alex that Sam has left before, but Lena doesn’t know. Sam claimed that it was for work but she had stayed longer than originally planned and always came back with some story or excuse. She came back changed and Ruby just assumed it was a bender or some other adult activity that Sam wanted to shield her from. Ruby wanted to protect her privacy and never told Lena about any of it. Alex thanked her for sharing that and promised her discretion. “Are you worried?” “No.” Alex could tell she was worried.

They head back downstairs and Alex shares a look with Kara over Ruby’s head that Lena attempts and fails to interpret. “Right” Lena says with false confidence. “I’ve got people working on all the …angles” she looks quickly at Kara who nods her understanding of what is left unsaid “and all we need now is for this young lady to go and pack her overnight bag….” “What? Why!” “While your mother is not here I will be responsible for you...” “No bloody way!” “….and you will come and stay with me for the foreseeable time while we figure out a few...” "I said NO! I am staying RIGHT HERE until she comes back or calls or reaches out that she needs help I AM NOT LEAVING!”

Kara tries to placate with ' _Ruby, you can't stay here by yourself...'_ to which Ruby angrily replies that she can take care of herself and she is not a child. Alex knows that this is mostly true and tries a similar approach. “Look, Ruby, since we don’t really know what happened it’s best if you don’t stay here by yourself. We care….” Ruby angrily interrupts this with a dismissive “no, you don’t, you are just the sister of a friend of a friend of my mother’s, you don’t get a say in what I do. I want all of you OUT.”

Kara is able to diffuse the situation by offering to stay over for just the night or ' _until Sam comes back_ ' she says gently. She then calls Winn to hack Sam’s cell data and debit card use. “Want me to show you how?” Ruby offers. “Rain check” Kara smiles at her.

Sam is back by the end of the week with a story about a business trip gone awry. No one fully believes her explanation but she isolates herself at work and turns down all opportunities to socialize, claiming that Ruby needs to focus on her winter term exams and the upcoming school musical. Sam bemoans that Ruby is only in the Chorus as she didn’t apply herself enough to audition for a more prominent role. “That sounds like someone else I knew in Junior High”, Alex laughs when Kara updates Winn and her at the DEO. Kara huffs in mild annoyance and then relays what Lena separately passed along. Lena is frustrated at the growing tension between herself and Ruby over Sam’s right to a personal life versus Lena’s concern about their wellbeing. Lena confided to Kara that she will be monitoring Sam’s phones, and that she is concerned that Sam will flee again.

Alex notes that her contacts at the NCPD were not very helpful as they were consumed with reports of a female figure flying around at night terrorizing people, which may or may not be related to the sudden surge of missing persons and unsolved homicides. Winn wonders out loud whether this might have anything to do with Sam’s own disappearance. “Which part?” Kara asks. No one answers.

  
Weeks pass and their fears about Sam disappearing again are realized.

Alex accompanies Ruby to visit Lena at her office. Alex had intended to talk about Sam’s disappearance but all Lena seemed to be able to focus on was Ruby. Lena sought power of attorney to secure the house and pay the bills, however Ruby is quite upset by this. “She loves you” Lena reassures her. “She left me” Ruby replies bitterly. “Not on purpose, I’m sure. We’ll figure this out, just leave it to the adults to worry about everything” Lena soothes. Alex notes that this was the wrong approach to use with the sullen teen. “As long as I am around you will have a place to stay and nothing to worry about”. Ruby does not seem at all pleased with Lena's overtures so Alex works out a compromise where Ruby would stay in the house with their housekeeper while Lena seeks a guardianship order. Alex notes that Lena seems mildly hurt at Ruby’s rejection. She turns the conversation back to her original purpose for their joint visit.

Lena is clearly uncomfortable talking about Sam behind her back, but then begins to share some of her background with them. Ruby was unplanned, Lena tells them while looking nervously at Ruby. Lena shares that she and Sam were friends in high school and were quite close at one time. Sam’s mother was quite upset when she found out and Sam fled. There was no father in the picture, no known relatives and no obvious destination. She just disappeared into thin air. Sam hid for quite some time and Lena’s mother was eventually able to use her resources to track her down to a hostel in Gotham for unwed mothers or as Lillian referred to them, ' _stupid girls who got themselves in trouble'_. Lena paid a surprise visit to Gotham under the guise of a school trip “and that’s when I met you” she tells Ruby reverently. Ruby tries to listen impassively to all of this, some of it familiar and some a version she had not heard before. Sam eventually moved on and they lost touch, Sam likely had too much pride to ask for help and likely feared losing Ruby should she be discovered.

“When you called…” she tells Alex as she stands up from her perch on the sofa and moves to retrieve a controller from the edge of her desk “…I started to do more digging for something that would be helpful.” A large screen appeared out of its hiding place and with one smooth motion Lena turned it on to a live video conference with Ruby’s grandmother. Ruby is clearly taken aback and Alex steps closer to see better but remains protectively behind Ruby. Patricia Arias tells them that she is now expecting to be granted guardianship of Ruby and control over all of Sam’s assets before she will consider sharing any information. Lena is flustered as this is not why she reached out but the older woman is using this opportunity to exert her custodial rights. She claims that she won’t make the same mistakes as she did with Sam and expresses her gratitude for the opportunity to start over with Ruby. She admits sadly that before Lena reached out she didn’t know what had happened. She is not surprised that Sam has run off again as she turned out to be a disappointment in the end. She was too lenient with her and clearly should have been better supervised (looking knowingly at Lena) and vows to take a stricter approach with Ruby. "But the bright cloud in all of this is that I finally get to meet you!!" Patricia is exuberant. Ruby is rendered speechless by her mix of shock and offense at what has just transpired. Alex interjects that they will need proof of kinship before releasing Ruby from Government care. Lena stares at Alex at that point. This creates a bit of a standoff as Patricia stammers about how it has been so long she doesn’t recall exactly where she has put all her documents, nor does she know where Ruby’s birth would have been registered _'since she worked so hard to hide you from me'._ As her stalling grows more obvious Alex declares that for the time being Ruby is a witness in her protection and cannot be released into someone else’s custody. Now both Lena and Ruby are staring but say nothing out of their mutual confusion. Patricia agrees to let Ruby stay where she is ' _for now_ ' but offers little else in terms of information about Sam or Ruby’s background that would be useful. Alex instructs her to locate and send any proof of Sam or Ruby’s birth, adoption or other proof of kinship and Grandma Arias abruptly ends the call with Alex still speaking and Lena and Ruby still staring.

Alex later contacts Patricia separately having successfully called her bluff. She admits what Alex suspected – there are no records because Sam was not hers, at least not legally. “You might as well know….it may help…” Alex travels to retrieve the pod.


	3. Chapter 3

Back at the DEO it is confirmed that the pod is of Kryptonian origins and they even manage to find some DNA traces after all this time. They examine the spacecraft for alien technology and find both unusual crystals and a hologram device. The crystals are different than the ones usually associated with Krypton, very cloudy and dark in colour. It is clear that there used to be more of them.

Meanwhile, Winn starts working on cracking the GPS on Sam’s car to track her last known location. Aside from the usual business calls and visits to Ruby’s school there are also trips to a remote location in the desert a few hours away. Ruby is brought to the DEO for questioning about what she knows about her dad, her grandmother or anything else that might be useful.

Ruby is overwhelmed by the situation and it is hard to get her to settle down so she can be properly debriefed. She either doesn’t know much or has supressed some things she experienced in childhood. She also may just be wholly uncooperative. Alex tries first and then they bring in a different investigator, who treats Ruby like a hostile interview subject. Both approaches prove unsuccesful in uncovering any new or useable details. J’onn grows frustrated at their lack of progress so he approaches Ruby in the corridor once they escort her from the interview room, gripping the sides of her forehead while attempting to read her mind and access her memories. Ruby becomes frightened and she pulls away upset and petulant, complaining loudly “hey, that’s private!” though not fully processing what was just done to her. She is then taken to a lab to collect her DNA and becomes even more upset as she now fully suspects that they are all expecting to find her mother’s body.

The mystery of Sam’s whereabouts is solved during Ruby’s return trip from the DEO when Reign appears out of the sky. A DEO agent is driving while a young female analyst has come along as chaperone. She is talking animatedly to try and cheer up a brooding Ruby when Reign rips the roof off of the SUV and pulls her out, the seatbelt left behind in tatters. Ruby scrambles with the door on the not-yet- stopped vehicle but is spilled out from the now open roof after Reign upends it and dumps out the contents. Reign tosses the vehicle with the driver still inside and bears down on a sprawled Ruby. “You ruined everything!” Reign screams at her. “You never should have been born, you are an abomination!” She strides closer and Ruby is shocked to see how truly angry her mother is. “You delayed my true destiny and purpose, you made me weak, you made me part human. You never should have happened, you were a mistake.”  
Reign’s eyes grow red and she stares angrily at Ruby who has pulled herself up on her knees and is preparing to beg for her life.

Suddenly a blast from the woman’s eyes carves into the dirt and Ruby notices finally the blur of red and blue that has slammed into her mother from the side. Reign recovers and heads back to the sky with Supergirl in pursuit. The two dive and swoop as they evade each other while trying to gain an advantage. Supergirl attempts to reason with Reign that she does not want to hurt her child, which only seems to anger her further. Reign bests Supergirl who lands hard and struggles to get up. Reign’s own landing creates a small crater and she strides over to Supergirl. Ruby springs into action and scrambles to her feet, pleading with her mom to stop. “Mom please don’t …..you need help…” “I’ll remove you now and anyone else who gets in my way”. 

More DEO agents arrive and lay down covering fire as armoured vehicles move in to surround Reign, who scatters them like toys. Her eyes glow again and then Ruby crouches forward on all fours and just screams. Ruby’s voice sounds strange in her own ears, as though she is underwater. The color of everything around her fades to a red and grey hue like one of their old black and white TV sets from when she was a child and they had no money. DEO agents are down all over and some stumble to their feet. The body of Reign is lying prone on the ground close to Supergirl’s, still moving but without having any success in getting up. Ruby is shaking all over, everything around appears to be vibrating and the colours have all washed out. She hears her name called urgently and then again more gently. Several DEO agents descend around Supergirl and Reign as well as herself with guns drawn. A helicopter circles overhead with a large searchlight illuminating the area. 

Ruby panics and stands up shakily. One agent pulls off their helmet and she finally recognizes who it is. Alex anxiously looks at the bodies scattered around the ground and then refocuses on the girl, holding her arms in front of her torso with her hands extended. She commands Ruby to “look at me – only me – good…it’s going to be okay but you have to do exactly what I say – get on your knees – hands in front like this…” and then puts her hands and wrists together extended away from her body. Ruby doesn’t really understand but in her confusion does as she is shown. “Good – it will all be over soon…” Ruby looks up in confusion at Alex as the other agents hold their positions. Only Alex moves slowly towards her. “Good girl” says Alex. She approaches and places heavy cuffs over her wrists, closes them and then their weight pulls her hands down into the dirt. Ruby notices with curiosity when the metal begins glowing, then suddenly she has a headache, nausea and then everything goes black.

She wakes with her tongue stuck to the inside of her mouth - lying on her back on a vibrating surface and she hears the sound of metal scraping against metal. She slowly becomes more aware of her surroundings and realises that she can’t move; the metal chinking sound increases the more she tries. Her arm burns at the elbow. She rolls her head to the side to examine it and discovers the source – an IV drip in her brachial forearm. The arm stings with each drip and the burning sensation runs from her elbow to wrist. “oud”. “Hmm? Welcome to Earth”. She watches warily as a nurse (or medic, she is never sure which) moves into her line of sight. They are wearing scrubs but there is no mistaking the military swagger. “Out” she tries again. “Oh, no you just lie there and relax for a bit”. “Urts” she complains, brows furrowing with her frustration and maybe if she admits it – a little bit of fear. “Here” a voice on her opposite side draws her attention away. Alex is pouring a glass of water and holds it to her. By habit she reaches for it and is stopped sharply by the handcuffs.

Alex holds the glass near Ruby’s lips and with her other hand helps her to sit partially upright. Ruby leans and drinks greedily and Alex pulls it away. “go slow, you can have as much as you want but you have to go slow, okay? Small sips.” Ruby nods stiffly and leans forward again – taking small amounts while Alex patiently waits. “How’s Supergirl?” the medic asks with concern. “Better. She is resting under the lamps so I came to check on the minor here.” “She just woke up.” “Hurts” Ruby interjects, drawing both women’s attention back to her in the bed gesturing as well as she can with one immobilized hand and her chin to her dripline. “It burns, take it out.” The Medic-or-Nurse moves to look at it closely. Alex suggests slowing down the drip and does so immediately without waiting for agreement. The medic then straightens her arm and props it up on some of the bedding while Alex gets a cold wet compress from the sink. She places the compress on the inside of her wrist and Ruby sighs and relaxes instantly, bringing smiles to both women. “Is my mom here?” “Yes – she’s safe and can’t hurt anyone”. “I want to see her.” “Later. You are shaking are you cold?” Ruby is shaking so much that the bed has been vibrating. “No.” Alex pulls the coverlet up anyways. “I want to go home…I want to see my mom…I want to go home, please just let me go…No! I don’t want …”as she notices the medic plunge something into the side port on her IV. The room sounds blurry and she tastes rubber as she gives up and slides under, Alex’s voice trailing “see? Not so tough…” to the medic.  
  



	4. Chapter 4

“What did you get from the grandmother?” J’onn intercepts Alex as she exits the medical wing corridor. He walked with her for a bit while en route to check on Supergirl while she _worked on her tan_. “Very little actually. Sam was a strong, healthy and smart teenager when she became pregnant. She left home suddenly quite distressed after her mother pressured her to terminate, surrender the baby for adoption or hand it over to be raised by her. Sam refused and just ran away. Patricia suspected that it was because Sam was worried that the baby’s origins would be discovered.” 

“Covering for someone?”

“Yeah, or maybe covering something up?” 

“Anything that might have triggered it?” J'onn was referring to the sudden emergence of Sam's Reign personality. “Not according to her mother. There were no early signs, no warnings, and certainly never any violence. She had been able to track them down a few times thanks to the generosity of Lillian Luthor, each time they would fight and Sam would take off again before she could make amends. Sam was always afraid of losing Ruby. Patricia and Lillian even tried reporting her a few times to CFS in an attempt to regain control over her, or just to try and see Ruby. Did you get anything from her mind query?”

“A lot of old addresses where they lived, places where Sam worked, former schools and so on. Sam moved them around a lot, and there were times that she used false names to stay hidden. There were some… _not so great_ relationships too, so it wasn’t only to avoid Patricia.”

“Ugh. Anything really bad?” 

“Sam is a survivor, she did what she needed to protect Ruby.”

“Against what, though?”

“Only Sam knows the answer to that.” J'onn peels off leaving Alex to visit her sister.

***** *** *****

Ruby wakes up with a start - on the floor of a DEO holding cell – wearing light grey scrubs two sizes too big and barefoot; there are now bandages on her arms including thick ones at her wrists. She is wearing shiny metal bracelets with a green hue to them on each of her wrists. Her attempts to take one or the other off prove futile, they fit tight with a complicated locking system. She bashes one on the end of the cot, tries twisting it and then finally just attempts to chew on it when some agents walk in. “Stop that” they order. “What is it?” she asks. “A Behavior Modification Device” one of them smirks. The other agent looks unhappy and then explains that it is a governing device to limit her violent outbursts. “I never hurt anyone!” “Six agents in med bay say otherwise.” Stunned, she retorts “that wasn’t my fault….I mean I don’t know what happened. That never happened before, not on purpose?”

  
In then walks Maj. Lucy Lane in full uniform accompanied by J’onn. Ruby is automatically wary of them both. Lucy announces that “early tests indicate you are the biological daughter of that _thing_ in the mask. We are going to ask you some questions.” “You can’t keep me here! I have rights!” “You don’t, actually. You don’t seem to appreciate what is happening here so let me explain. When – _if_ \- we are comfortable that you are not dangerous we will consider reducing your restrictions, until then we will be containing you for safety reasons.” “Go Fuck yerself!” The bands vibrate suddenly causing her to wince. 

“You can’t keep me here I’m a minor!” “Do you see a juvie wing here? You should carefully reconsider your position at the moment.” Ruby rushed at the glass with her lips in a snarl and banged violently against it with her palms - until she dropped to her knees with nausea and an instant headache. “See? It’s like a bark collar!” one agent gleefully explains to the others. “Enough!” Henshaw booms and they all walk out of the cell. Lucy stops at the entrance. “Try to understand that we are just trying to help you. We don’t want to see you end up like her. It’s in your best interest to cooperate with us. Or... we have a lot of other cells we could show you. Think about it”. She left then as well, and a few minutes later Ruby feels marginally better. She stretches out on the floor, refusing to use the cot in the room as a small act of defiance.

  
Once Winn finishes his debriefing of the GPS from Sam’s car the DEO team are able to find the hideout she had been using in the desert. It was a fortress that had been cloaked from satellite detection and reminded Winn of something built by termites. He was secretly glad he was not expected to go inside. The team was successful in locating additional crystals, most likely the ones missing from Sam’s pod. 

Back at the DEO facility they determine that one of them is a hologram crystal and place it with the Alura hologram. It has the same interface and Kara spends time debriefing them both, seeking for any information about Reign, her origins, and her ultimate purpose on Earth. Alex is concerned that Kara will be negatively affected by the new hologram, in the same way it may have harmed Sam. Kara reluctantly agrees to have cameras recording and a sentry posted while she works. Alex remains concerned, these measures should minimize the risk and she has a lot of her own work she should be doing so she decides to give Kara some space to work. “I mean, we don’t really know what happened, it could be anything, and it could be a combination of things…” Alex soothes as she leaves. Kara does not look at her as she retreats.

  
Winn then begins working with Agent Vasquez to help her complete an initial intelligence profile with the timeline of Sam and Ruby’s school, work, and residence history. There were several abrupt departures from places, but no record of any police charges aside from some identity fraud, and all of that seemed to be mostly lease related. Alex decides its time to try and get some more information and walks into Ruby’s cell alone. Ruby is lying on the floor doing her best to ignore her but it is hard due to the all-glass enclosure she is in.

“So that’s why you’re such a weird kid – you were an actual alien this whole time.” She is rewarded with a small glare. “– How about we get you out of there for a little bit so we can go over a few things.” Ruby goes back to ignoring her. She is actually quite good at it, making Alex chuckle slightly. “– Hungry? Thirsty? Curious?” - her head stops mid shake. “Because I know some things you don’t – thought you might be interested. You answer some of my questions and I’ll answer some of yours.” “I want to see my mom, first.” “Okay” her head snaps up at that. “For real?” “Yes. I said _later_ and it is now later. But you gotta behave…” Ruby nods yes. “Or else, you know” – Alex gestures vaguely at one of the wrist bands. Ruby nods again.

“Okay – stand up – hands out….I won’t cuff you unless you give me a reason, yeah?” Ruby nods. “Transfer prisoner X-39” Alex calls out loudly. Ruby feels her wrists grow warm and again loses energy – she had thoughts of asking for food, but now decides against it. She starts to shake once more. “Ready?” She gives an uncertain nod. “You okay?” and then another unconvincing nod. “I’ll be alright…” The cell opens like a vapor lock and the first thing she notices is the smell of damp air – they are clearly underground somewhere. She follows Alex closely out of the cell into the DEO corridor with growing anxiety and awareness of just how actually screwed she is. It is clear that this is not a police station.

Alex reaches behind and puts a hand on her elbow – bringing Ruby to a position beside her. “Keep your hands open and out in front” she gently commands. Ruby complies and they walk slowly past other cells. She can’t see into any to know which one her mother is in. _Maybe they can put them together?_ At the end of the corridor Alex codes into a bigger room. An encouraging nod leads Ruby in, who then stops in her tracks and halts Alex along with her. 

The room has a large tank containing her mother submerged in some kind of gel. There are nodes and leads all over her body, hooked to machines. “She’s okay – we have her well sedated.” Ruby wets her lips. She feels heavy and suddenly conscious of the effort it takes to breathe. “You can talk to her.” Alex lets go and takes a position near the door along the wall, watching them both, her hand resting on her duty belt near a gun. Ruby approaches the tub cautiously and remembers the last time they spoke. Was it one day ago? Her mom looks so different now, peaceful and relaxed out of her costume. There are no obvious injuries. Ruby whispers, aware that someone somewhere is likely listening in (aside from Alex, of course).

“Hi, Mom I’m sorry I’m glad you are here well not _glad_ -glad just glad you’re alive and here and not missing. Just glad you can’t hurt anyone else y’a know, and I am sorry if I hurt you I didn’t mean it” - she swallows heavily – her mouth suddenly sticky – “I’m gonna try and be more careful but you gotta try too, okay? We’ll work this out somehow we’ll figure it out together - and we’ll get out of here – and go somewhere soon and start again. I’ll be good and now that I know it’ll be better. Please wake up. Please come back. Please don’t stay like her – I love you no matter what and I’m sorry this happened to you”. She looks cautiously at Alex, then reaches into the gel and gently takes Sam’s hand and squeezes. She is disappointed when nothing changes on the monitors or with her mother’s state. 

This is nothing like the movies at all.


	5. Chapter 5

A long time passes before Alex gently says, “okay, that’s it for now -we’ll come back later.” “Are you ever gonna let her wake up?” – she is trying not to cry and her voice cracks with the effort. “Eventually. When we figure a few things out. – that’s where you come in.” Ruby looks at Alex curiously. “Ready?” No, but she nods yes instead.

Alex codes at the door and they head back out into the damp hallway. She immediately feels less pressure in her chest and her shaking subsides. Alex walks slowly and Ruby follows beside her. Alex takes a different route than before, and they do not seem to be returning to the cells. Instead, Alex says “I thought you’d like to see where I work.” “You aren’t a regular FBI agent, I’m guessing”. “No, not hardly” she smiles. Alex leads her into a lab typical of any high school chem class. This room is smaller, though and has much more elaborate and expensive equipment. 

“Come look at this – what do you know about DNA?” “Not much.” Ruby is curious but doing her best to hide her interest in anything. She looks at some images displayed on a smartboard hanging along one wall. “This is you” Alex taps below one helix proudly as though showing her a baby picture. “We’ve never seen anything like it.”

“This is your mom’s” Alex taps on one of the other helixes displayed then pulls up others “– this is a regular human female adult” taps again “ – and this is Supergirl’s”. Ruby stared for a long time not wanting to appear dumb but clearly out of her element. DNA and genetics was supposed to be covered next year. This year was some useless plant biology that she barely remembers and is clearly of little use to her now in light of recent events.

Alex explains – “your mom’s is similar to Supergirl’s which means she is likely of Kryptonian origin. Some samples we took from her prove that as well. You have some similar markings and some human ones”.

“I’m an alien…”

“Hybrid, technically”. Ruby looks over and Alex winks. “That makes you very special and rare – and so very important”. “You sound like Lena”. Alex guffaws at that “you don’t like her much.” “Do you? She’s just different. She always tries too hard. It’s off putting”. Alex hmms at that. “Too smart and lacks social skills”. Alex hmms again. 

“Anyways, you may be the key to what is going on with your mom. – have a look” – Alex steps aside and reveals a microscope on one of the lab tables. Ruby dutifully steps up and assumes the position while Alex rotates the slides for her. “Your blood – human blood – this one’s Supergirl’s…” “How did you get my blood?!” Alex smiles again. “Did you forget where you are?” 

Ruby had assumed her bandages were from her IV but now realises they likely cover the areas where other samples had been taken as well. Miffed at the invasion of her rights and privacy, she turns back to the DNA display. “That’s against the constitution or something…” “It’s not”. “You needed my consent.” “We actually didn’t. It was for diagnostic reasons” she explains, using air quotes that Ruby finds obnoxious. “I’m still a minor”. Alex merely smiles. In her custody, Ruby remembers with a shudder.

After a moment of annoyed silence Alex walks up beside her and quietly asks “notice anything?” Ruby points at the helix marked Human Female. “Well, you’re not a natural redhead…” Alex stares bug-eyed at Ruby who can’t contain her pleased grin. Alex laughs then and so does a more relaxed Ruby. “Lena was right about you – too smart for your own good”, which causes more quiet laughter. 

“Here” – she places Sam’s helix directly over top of Supergirl’s. “They are almost identical except for some markers we can’t identify”. “Mom is not purely alien?” “Perhaps she was modified genetically”. “Like a test tube baby?” “Yeah, or at some point after conception. Maybe during gestation, maybe after birth. There has been growing research in gene manipulation but humans are quite far behind.” Ruby quietly states…”maybe that is why Supergirl is so…good… and my mom is…” Alex nods as Ruby cannot complete that thought out loud. “It can’t just be nature vs nurture, there must be a lot of other factors”.

Alex tries to pull Ruby’s attention back from her distressed thoughts. “Wanna answer some more questions?” Ruby gives an indifferent shrug. There was a long list of stuff that she did not want to do. “Okay” she says dispassionately. Alex rolls an office chair over to her. “Here, have a seat. What do you know about your birth?”

They talked for hours. Alex pulled out her lunch but Ruby refused to share with her until it went unfinished, then started picking at it.


	6. Chapter 6

Alex learned quite a bit – Ruby never had a dad, he was never mentioned nor did she have any guesses or clues. She tried searching behind her mom’s back a bit when she was younger, but then gave up because doing so felt wrong. She had assumed that something bad had happened, or that she would find out that she was always unwanted, so she stopped. She was worried that she would get caught or surface something painful and she never wanted to hurt her mom. Ruby stopped talking at that point and looked at her hands for awhile, remembering the harsh words her mother used to describe how having her had ruined everything. She recalled with embarrassment that Alex had heard all of it as well. “Hey it’s okay – “she violently shrugged off Alex’s consoling hand. She was not a hugger regardless of the situation.

“It’s just – there is so much I don’t understand and probably never will now.” “Well, you are not alone, there’s a whole lot of people who care and are here to help.” “You’re just the sister of a friend of a friend of my mother’s...” “True – but I’m here now”. “ -- cuz you work here” “ – true. And I would hate to lose you as a research subject”. Alex laughed at the look on Ruby’s face.

They made more chit chat about Ruby’s childhood illnesses, her general strength growing up and what happened during the fight. Ruby had always assumed that she was just naturally athletic, and didn’t find it strange that she had never broken a bone. Her mother was always over cautious so Ruby naturally just avoided taking risks as well. Alex pulled up some aerial shots of the confrontation between Ruby and her mother. Ruby was equally impressed and concerned by what she saw. “I don’t know how that happened.” she admited. “I don’t want to get worse and end up like her.” “We’ll figure it out.” Alex reassured her and placed a hand on her clavicle, gives her a quick squeeze and then takes it off again, respecting Ruby’s aversion to affection.

“What’s in the bracelet?” Ruby asks shyly. “Kryptonite”. “Makes me ill.” “ – yeah. I know.” “ – take it off?” “Not yet. You don’t know the extent of your powers or how to control them, this is safer for everyone including you.” “Can you turn it down or something?” “Yes.” Her shaking immediately eases.

Ruby is taken back to her cell so Alex can continue to work. Alex apologizes for the living arrangements and makes a mental note to get something for her to do while she spends time alone. Instead of returning to the lab she heads for J’onn’s office, where Winn is already assembled and showing J'onn some video footage as part of a briefing.

“What else did you learn from Sam’s mother? Where there any early signs that she noticed? Maybe it was triggered by something?” Alex makes a note of how anxious Winn seems. “Nothing along those lines, no. Just the usual teenage rebellion.” “Perhaps this was part of her initial DNA coding all along, and this was always going to happen.” J'onn suggests. “Or maybe there were external triggers an…um, environmental trigger. Or she is under some kind of mind control?” Alex thought about Kara interacting with the same hologram and crystal they found and involuntarily shuddered.

Alex pulled out a chair and sat herself down before continuing with what she and Ruby learned from their visit to LCorp. “Lena helped her out over the years whenever Sam reached out to her. She gave her some job leads and provided references, she got her in to night school and even a few work placements. Then they would fall out of touch again. Sam would just move suddenly – Lena never asked about it, she didn’t think Sam had any one else to lean on and she worried about Ruby. It seemed to be just a part of Sam’s … _lifestyle_. A lot of negative choices, bad relationships, her estranged mother and all that came with it.” “Did anyone ever come looking for her?” “Arias said no, never. After Sam took off the Luthors offered to help, they used their organization and money and were able to find her once or twice but she would run off again – she got better at hiding, it seems.” “From what, though?” No one had an answer for that. 

Ruby is sleeping in her cell, out of boredom but also because the stress of the day has caught up with her. The Kryptonite level is lower and the lights are dimmer and she is using a blanket that came from somewhere – _no longer deemed a suicide risk_ she thought wryly when she first saw it. Some DEO agents walk in and then the lights and kryptonite immediately jump to higher levels. Ruby is startled awake and finds herself sprawled on the floor having fallen ungracefully off the narrow cot. The pressure in her chest is back along with a tingling sensation in her limbs, and her shaking returns.

“What did I do?” she asks, trying not to show fear. They don’t answer, just ask her to leave the cell. She takes too long and is hauled out, her arms in a twisted position high behind her back, which causes her to cry out. “When told to move you move. Thought you understood the rules by now”. She is being pulled along between the much larger guards, her feet scrambling to keep up though clearly it doesn’t matter, they seem quite happy to drag her. They take her down a corridor past the room where they are containing her mom. She has mixed feelings when they don’t stop. They take her instead to a large dark room which may have been a weight room at some point. Ruby notices the small shower off to one side, the empty hooks along one wall, and the benches that smell of stale sweat and hospital grade sanitizer.

She notices the chair just as she is tossed into it. It is a normal office task chair but with ankle and wrist restraints. Lucy Lane walks in from another door followed by a team of people wearing tactical gear with their weapons un-holstered. They take up positions around the room while medical staff in scrubs arrive and start opening pelican cases on tables. Some techs set up various laptops and connect with ports around the room. ”What’s going on?” she squeaks. A medic squeezes her cheeks together as leads are placed along her head and neck.

“We’re just running some more tests” says Lucy reassuringly. Ruby is not reassured. “I thought you already did?” “ That was lab work. These are different tests - to measure different things. Now let us know if this hurts or is too uncomfortable and we’ll take a break, alright?” she seemed to be speaking more to the assembled staff than to her. 

They begin with the glowing green rock out of one case.

Ruby empties what was left of Alex’s lunch on the floor.


	7. Chapter 7

Kara has joined Alex inside Ruby’s cell. She is angrily pacing, the heels of her boots clicking out her frustration while Alex is standing still as she watches Ruby lying on her small bench facing away from them. It appears that Ruby might be sleeping but her soft moans suggest otherwise.

“How could you let them DO this to her!” Kara accuses. _Let them_ , Alex considers. “I didn’t know” she answers quietly, aware that Ruby is likely listening. Kara scoffs angrily at that. “You were supposed to be watching her! Protecting her!” Alex was tired. Tired is an understatement. Although Reign was contained in the DEO, the havoc continued outside. There were clearly other malevolent forces at play, somehow tied to Reign’s emergence and also of previously unknown supernatural origins. All of the DEO were working full out to locate and identify any violent Kryptonians masquerading as humans, and to determine what their plans were here on Earth. Supergirl had been doing regular patrols to help NCPD respond to the rise in violent attacks while Alex had been chained to her workstation, her research hindered by the constant requirement to attend meetings about other meetings. Neither Supergirl or Kara Danvers the Reported had not been completely dialed in to what the DEO did and did not know. Partially because of her classification level and partially due to ongoing concerns about the impact these unknown forces might have on her. 

“It’s actually not my job to watch over her” Alex wearily replied, knowing that she was simply provoking her sister-hero. It was the completely wrong thing to say and she was not surprised when Kara continued to lash out at her. 

“They put a HOLE…in her SPINE!” Kara stops her pacing then and gestures at Ruby, who is moaning miserably on her cot. Alex is hit with a wave of nauseous guilt. When they were finished with all of their other tests they did a spinal tap on the girl. No sedatives were used and it was not what normal people would call _sterile_. They were going to get a lot more useful data from this than from any of the other samples combined, and simply put: they were running out of time.

“She has the ability to self heal. They tested that first.” Alex fired back. It was an awful thing to say, but if they were going to argue at least Alex was going to have a proper argument. She was tired of always being Kara’s scratching post. If she was going to be blamed for something at least it should be something that she actually participated in.

“Can you at least put her under the sunlamps to help?” Alex looks away and says nothing, giving Kara the answer without saying it. As expected this infuriated Kara even more. “She should be your primary responsibility. Your job should be to protect her!” When Kara attacks with emotion, Alex responds with basic facts. It’s how it has always been between them. “My job is to protect agents. To protect the public from alien threats.” They are both right and they both know it, but this argument feels inevitable so they continue. 

“She trusted you! We both did. You should have been looking out for her, regardless of what your job description says.” “Well, I can’t do everything, Kara, some of us are only human after all.” “They could have paralyzed her.” Alex felt sick. She doesn’t remember the last time she ate and has been running on adrenaline. Adrenaline and caffeine…and a healthy fear of her Martian boss. “I am…doing my… _best_ ” Alex implores. Kara stomps off, signaling that she doesn’t think it is enough. Alex watches Ruby for a bit. She is clearly feigning sleep but her breathing pattern shows that she is in pain. Alex heads off to the med bay, where she distracts the duty medic long enough to secure two experimental high dose pain relievers, forging J’onn’s signature on the orders. She returns to the cell with a paper cup of water and tells Ruby that she knows she is awake. Ruby acknowledges this by weakly swearing. 

“C’mon. I have something for you that should help.” Ruby does not want to cooperate but is too weak to put up much resistance. Alex supports her enough to swallow both pills one after the other, with sips of water in between. They are both reminded of when Ruby was secured to a bed in their med bay while Alex helps her to drink. Was that yesterday or the day before? A week ago maybe. Neither of them is sure. Ruby is violently shaking again. “It’s really strong so it should start to work right away” Alex explains while easing Ruby’s head back down. She leaves out the fact that this is experimental, untested and laced with a very strong “not Government approved” sedative. Ruby is gently snoring by the time Alex lowers the lights and leaves her cell. 

Alex returns to her lab. A new file is waiting for her on her laptop. She clicks to open it and sees that these are the results from the tests they just performed on Ruby, sent by Maj Lane and marked “urgent”. She scrolls through it without really retaining anything she is looking at. _God, she is just so tired_ she self pities as she rubs at her eyes. She can’t remember the last time she slept, truly slept, or ate anything worth eating. Kara has been too occupied to nag her about it, and Alex is glad that Kara is not aware of the DEO's secret method of keeping Agents upright and fit for duty under extreme stress. Alex has been medicating herself with DEO supplied stimulants. Not _FDA approved_ by any stretch of the imagination as this is essentially a form of Government sanctioned meth. It allows her to push through exhaustion and pain and hunger to remain task focused and alert. Alex worries sometimes about the long term effects this will have on all of them, but pushes that fear away by rationalizing that they won’t live long enough to find out if she can’t keep it together and focus. Alex muses that the short term effects are clearly a loss of empathy as she does not feel badly that they tested Ruby, nor that they continue to keep Sam in a coma, or that they aren’t exactly telling Kara everything they know about the current Kryptonian threat and how they will likely defeat it. Alex lets out a frustrated sigh, then goes to the section where they documented her vital signs and is reassured that they didn’t cross any ethical lines. Well, aside from not obtaining parental consent which is understandable under the circumstances. 

She slams down the top of the laptop in frustration and goes to seek out Kara to finish their argument, as she realises that this is the only way that she will be able to focus on her own work. She recognizes that they can’t deal with an emo Kara right now and they need to keep her onside. She also gives in to her lifelong need to be right and to win arguments, regardless of how petty that feels. 

She is driven by caffeine, a mild fear of her Martian boss, and the always present need to compete with Kara.

As she stalks around the DEO trying to determine if her sister left already, her mind reels with Kara's accusations and lack of appreciation. Kara has always resented Alex’s job and as a result she never felt that she could display any professional pride in front of her. Alex devoted years of her life and sacrificed so much just to get to where she is now, but always feels that she needs to hide this part of herself. Kara never acknowledges the impact that Alex has had on public safety. On Kara’s own safety. Alex has done nothing wrong and has sacrificed so much on behalf of others while Kara gets all the glory. Alex is sick of it. 

She finds Kara in the room containing her mother’s original hologram and the newly surfaced hologram used by Reign. She is not interacting with either one, she is simply pacing back and forth between them, looking distressed.

It hits Alex then suddenly and her anger immediately dissipates – this is not about Ruby.


	8. Chapter 8

Alex stands silently and watches Kara pace. Kara had glared at her when she first walked in, clearly annoyed at the intrusion, but now is simply trying to ignore her in the small space. Alex lowers her voice to the tone she uses exclusively with Kara, and attempts a standing position that is somewhere between condescending and authoritative. She always manages to sound like Eliza when she does this. “We are simply running out of time.”

That was the truth of it. Kara likes truth. Alex will continue with more truth.

“We got as far as we could with as little as we have. They needed more than we were getting from other methods.” Kara snorts at that. At least Alex can tell she is listening. “She is safest here, when you consider all the options.”

Kara stops pacing then and wheels to face Alex. A good sign and yet Alex still braces herself. “Well, then...” Kara adds a cape flourish for effect. “Needs – Must. Ends versus Means. Whatever concept you humans use to justify things.” Kara is practically spitting she is so angry. Angry and on the verge of tears. Alex won’t back down now, there are things that Kara needs to hear and some things that Alex needs to say.

“Are you making a greater good argument? Cuz that’s what this is” Alex responds. Kara glares at her then. It is not as effective as her pout but she is clearly trying to impress Alex. “Well, I hope your career benefits from all of this. I bet you are excited whenever live research subjects just fall into your lap. Maybe when this is all done finally you will get promoted while I live with the knowledge that you all found and tested new ways to control me!” Okay, so maybe Kara does know more than she gave her credit for. 

Alex changes tactics and moves to put her arms around Kara. Kara likes compassion as much as she likes truth. Kara remains completely rigid and still, and her body feels ice cold. It’s like trying to hug a lamppost. Alex persists, partially to save face and also to try and reconnect with her. Alex murmurs “I would never let them do that to you.” “I would” is Kara’s unexpected retort. “I would let them punch as many holes in you as they wanted.” Alex gasps out loud and Kara continues. “They could make a pin cushion out of you for all I care.” Alex laughs then, knowing that their argument is essentially over. Kara wants to get a few cheap shots in before they call a truce. Alex lets her; it’s not like Kara can safely threaten any other human without experiencing consequences. 

Alex does not let go and after an extended silence Kara speaks again. “I don’t hate you, I just hate that this is your job.” Kara quietly concedes. Kara is incapable of holding grudges. She is the opposite of Alex and hates arguments as much as Alex loves them. Kara remains stock still but her body temperature gradually rises so Alex knows they are on the right track. A few more minutes and Kara’s body will become more malleable, and if they have enough time she might even allow Alex to sway with her for a little bit. 

Alex forgets sometimes that Kara is thin skinned yet impenetrable at the same time. “This job is my duty and my obligation. I am trying my best but I simply cannot be responsible for everything all at once.”

“You are really bad at apologizing”. “I didn’t know I was. Look, we all have days of work to do and only hours to get it done. I’m sorry you don’t approve of our methods but we are trying. Give us some credit, we are on the right side of all of this.” Kara remains unmoved, both physically and emotionally.

More truth, then. “I – always - struggle with what we do here. You make this hard and you make this worthwhile.” Kara says nothing and after a few moments Alex just drops her grip on her sister completely. “Fine” Alex huffs in faux annoyance. She turns to leave and Kara turns to follow her out. “Well, where are you going?” Alex challenges in a friendly way. “Back to patrol the skies some more. Apparently it’s important to protect humans from aliens who harm them or something.” Alex smiles grimly at that. “Do you think she’ll be okay?” Kara asks without looking at Alex. 

Alex informs her that she gave Ruby some pain medication with sedatives to help her sleep – they were experimental and she wasn’t supposed to have access to them. “That was risky” Kara chastised. “Not really, she seems physically able to handle the dose”. “No, I meant to you.” Alex hid her relief. They were still not okay but Kara was “less mad” and she’ll take it for now.


	9. Chapter 9

When Ruby finally wakes up she realizes that she is feeling much better. She stretches all over and is pleased when her joints pop and realign themselves. It is always so satisfying and she no longer worries that this might be an early sign of future arthritis like her mother always warned. Too many new things to worry about at the moment. She wipes at her face and cringes at the drool that has dried along her mouth while she slept. “Slept” is a bit of a misnomer, clearly she was unconscious. She cracks her neck and smiles again, then works out each one of her knuckles. No one is there to tell her it is unladylike, and she has no other way of entertaining herself. She wishes she had some water. She rubs her hands through her tangled hair and wishes she had a mirror. She looks down and her rumpled clothes and gives herself a exploratory sniff when she realizes that she has no actual idea of how long she has been sleeping. Or how long she has been alone this cell. Or how long she has been detained in general. The thought unsettles her and she separates her hair into large sections and begins one of several attempts to braid it. 

Alex walks in and startles at the sight of Ruby hanging upside down from her cot, then relaxes when she realizes that she is still alive and that this was not some botched suicide attempt. Alex crooks an eyebrow at her and Ruby sheepishly explains that her arms had gotten tired. She swivels back upright and finishes off the braid before it occurs to her that she has no hair tie available. Alex comes to the rescue with a removable velcro loop from her duty belt and Ruby thanks her more out of habit and conditioning rather than genuine appreciation.

Alex, in contrast to Ruby, has not slept. It is clear from her puffy eyes and sunken cheeks and dried out lips that are now cracked in one corner. Or maybe hungover, Ruby contemplates. Or both, who even knows. "Well you look like you are feeling better?” Alex says huskily. Ruby simply nods, there is no point in being coy. She considers thanking the woman for the meds but doesn’t feel like letting her off the hook just yet. “Would you like to come with me, then? There is something we need to discuss.” Ruby is thrown by what appears to be a request. Alex is acting strangely, she is unsettled and uncomfortable about …something. Ruby wonders if she has been recently disciplined. Or simply has a conscience underneath all of that body armor and feels guilty about how they have been treating her. Ruby does not respond but gets to her feet. Alex turns sideways and gestures her through the open door to her cell. This is also new and unsettling, she is not being placed in cuffs or threatened about the consequences for non compliance. 

Ruby exits the cell with false bravado, which completely disappears once she is out in the corridor and realizes she doesn’t know where they are going or why. She resorts back to trailing Alex at her heels and slowly pieces together that they are likely heading back to her lab. As they walk Ruby tries to take in any clues as to what day it is, what time it is, what the weather is like outside and what if anything has changed amongst her captor-guardians. She is still puzzling over this in silence when they enter Alex’s lab and she hides her surprise at seeing it occupied with other agents. 

“Have a seat, Miss Arias.” J’onn instructs her, not quite friendly and not quite hostile all at once. “I prefer to stand” she answers him, which makes no sense but it is all she can consider doing by way of not cooperating and is not keen to have more tests run on her if they tie her to another chair. She considers demanding to speak to a lawyer but cannot muster enough confidence to say it out loud. Plus she is very confident of what their answer will be so there is no point in wasting anyone’s time. 

J’onn shoots Alex what could only be described as an annoyed look and then gestures vaguely across the room. “You remember Agent Schott.” Winn – and his firewalls. She is suddenly aware that he had let her win their games that night and feels foolish. He is equally uncomfortable to see her again under these circumstances. She can tell, because he offers absolutely nothing by way of greeting or recognition and simply begins their interaction by babbling about how they had been using her DNA sample to track down her father.

He continues to over-explain his technique for hacking government databases ( _as though she might want that information for future use_ ) and she grows increasingly concerned about whether anything that they have been doing with her is legal. 

“Winn…” Alex quietly prompts. “Right! Why do you think the government stores DNA for future use?” “To id dead bodies.” Winn cringes at her response. “Yes. Correct, but, also… as part of the penal system.” Ruby quickly picks up what he has just thrown down. “My dad is a criminal” she quickly guesses. She thinks about some ex boyfriends of her mother, ones who disappeared and some her mother fled from in the middle of the night with Ruby in tow. “He must be a significant criminal if his DNA is kept in a database” she concludes. “No, he is THE criminal” Winn is excited to tell her. “Agent Schott” Hank warns. “Right.” Winn is sheepish now. He hesitates, opening and closing his mouth while shifting awkwardly in his task chair. Alex grows increasingly frustrated and is eventually the one who tells her. Ruby is stunned and won’t look at anyone, instead she glances at objects around the room while she tries to process what they have just said. She stares at the whiteboard across the room, the new writing on it betrays her as the words grow blurry then stream down the board in rivulets before dripping off the edge and onto the floor. It is definitely not because she is crying. The words are harder to make out now, but she can still see it there, dark lettering stark against the white shiny board.

One name.

The worst name. 

“Lex Luthor”.


	10. Chapter 10

Ruby can hear a gasping, wheezing noise and realizes that it is coming from her. Ruby does not want to be hugged – _stupid Alex -_ though she lacks the capacity to stop it. It is all their fault, they must have done something to her to make her feel this way. She is dying, she is sure of it. It's a heart attack or her lungs gave out – there’s pain all over and her throat has collapsed on itself, her insides are dry all over and she wants to swear but nothing works, she wants to cry out for her mother but is unable.

“Breathe” Alex is saying. _No shit_. “Breathe out. Blow.” That’s so stupid, she needs _air_ and a ..a…a defibrillator... why would she do the _opposite?_ “Like blowing out birthday candles, c’mon.” She is sick of being bossed around but does it anyways just to make Alex look stupid in front of her coworkers. What she really needs is medical attention but clearly they didn’t read whatever international convention there is that says they are supposed to provide that to her. After she forcefully and sarcastically exhales, a rush of cold air stings as it immediately refills her lungs. It hurts but in a good way. _Sweet relief_. She finally understands that expression. “Good” annoying, smug Alex is saying. Ruby glares without making eye contact. she would have thought of this on her own its not like Alex saved her life or anything. “Again – out, like blowing up a balloon –“ this is now ridiculous and she refuses. She thinks she should be worried about the black spots in her vision and numb fingers but doesn’t know if she should mention it. Though, when she thinks about she _can’t_ actually mention it as she needs air to be able to talk. Alex demonstrates the blowing up of the imaginary balloon and, weirdly, Ruby’s body betrays her by copying the motion. They both look stupid but okay that does feel better so _not_ dying but something is seriously wrong with her. Something is occupying her - no that's not the right word, she can’t think straight, probably due to the brain damage she just suffered due to the lack of oxygen.

Not occupies her, _possesses_ her. That’s the word. They have done something to her, injected or implanted her with something that has stopping her from breathing, something has taken over her and is trying to kill her from the inside. Maybe it is the same thing that now lives inside her mother. A parasite. She keeps her arms folded over her chest like a dead insect to continue to block Alex’s hug but she is being held now anyways.

“One, 2 3 4…” Alex singsongs like a kindergarten teacher, it is super annoying and condescending. Then she counts 1 to 8 and then repeats 1 to 4 all over again. Ruby is humiliated but also betrayed by her own body that is now breathing eagerly along with Alex’s cadence. Alex hasn’t given up her attempt at a hug either and while Ruby futilely pushes against Alex in an attempt to get away Alex holds fast, her fingers tap a rhythm on her back.

Ruby becomes aware of extra hands on back, rubbing gently in parallel with Alex’s succinct and brisk movements. She hears Alex’s sister ask what happened – “overwhelmed” is all Ruby makes out. Kara hums sympathetically ”poor thing”. Ruby looks down and sees the red toe of a boot – which makes more sense, as she was wondering what Kara would be doing here. She must be overtired, she rationalizes.

* * *

Lena is working late in her LCorp office. She had planned to spend the evening with Ruby back at her mansion. She had stocked up on ice cream and other junk food and had planned on letting Ruby pick some inappropriate movie on pay-per-view so she could pretend to be the “fun vodka aunt” for a little while. No matter, she would let Ruby have her adolescent required personal space while she worked to solve the mystery of Sam’s disappearance. Ruby hadn’t seemed at all grateful when learning about all the assistance she had provided them both over the years while expecting nothing in return. She had listened to Sam complain about how self-involved and aloof Ruby had become, and now she was starting to see it for herself. Perhaps she just needed time to process everything. She was likely too proud to ask for help just like her mother. _Just like herself_ she smiled at the thought. 

  
She was organizing her archived files on Sam she had made from their interactions over the years. She would provide them to Alex the next time they spoke, there might be some leads or patterns they could determine using the Bureau’s unique access and intelligence collection. She was certainly not staying late because she was sulking over the rejected friendly overtures she had made to her surrogate ‘niece’. No, she was doing this in the best interest of Sam and the investigation.

  
It was then that Lillian Luthor paid her a visit.

“Hello mother.” Lena greets icily, powering off her computer with a flourish. “You don't seem surprised to see me. I must say your security has improved” Lena picks up the phone before it finishes its signal “yes, Jess, I'm aware no it's fine and a little late now, don't you think?” “Yes,” Lena hangs up and smiles at her then, “but it will never be Luthor proof”. Lillian smiles proudly at the faux compliment.

“I understand your _friend_ has pulled another disappearing act.” Lillian is all knowing and her comments doesn’t faze Lena. She explains what they have recently learned about Sam and her origins – “It’s a shame we didn’t have the alien detection device completed back then, it would have been quite useful. To get the girl the necessary help she needed” she adds when she sees the look on Lena’s face. Lena learns nothing useful from their exchange, but is inclined to believe that Lilian had not always been aware of Sam’s alien origins. “So why did you spend so much time and money helping Patricia look for her?” “I was helping you” she replies. Lena gives her an incredulous look. “You had so few friends. It was a shame, really.” There it is, thought Lena. They almost had a nice moment. “I wanted you to appreciate how valuable being a Luthor could be, what we could accomplish for each other with our combined wealth and intellect.” ”Yet Sam was alone and broke and she still eluded all of us for years.” Lilian scowled at that reminder of her humiliation.

“Yes, well if you need any help now, you know you can just ask.” Lena desperately wanted to ask the older woman for help, for advice, for any leads but knew better to encourage her involvement. She had gotten enough already from their brief encounter and was starting to feel that familiar ache at the base of her skull that came with her mother’s unwanted attention. “Thank you, mother” she said instead. Lilian smiled as though that was some minor victory and then took her leave, smirking at a still flustered Jess as she floated past.


	11. Chapter 11

Ruby is back in her cell. _Where else?_ She is sitting on the floor leaning against her cot with her head buried in her folded arms perched on her bent knees. She had been offered some water when she finally calmed down but foolishly refused it. She now regrets it as she feels dehydrated. 

She cried in front of her – in front of all of them – and can never look at any of them again. She acted like a baby. It’s probably what they wanted, another way of breaking her. She needs to stay focused and not let her guard down like that again. Emotions just give them power, best to avoid them altogether. She sniffles some more and then attempts to freshen up by just rubbing her hands over her still wet face. It’s then that she notices Alex standing silently just inside the open door, arms crossed in front with her head tilted curiously to one side as she observes her. It’s one of the only two poses she seems to know. Ruby is worried she has come back for another hug attempt to console her.

“Well, do you want to come or are you going to just sit there and pout?” 

Alex smirks at her before turning to walk away, leaving the door open behind her. Nothing good comes from leaving her cell. Then again, nothing good has come from refusing to leave her cell. Decision made, Ruby clumsily scrambles to her feet and chases after Alex who has strode off on ahead without waiting.

They walk briskly through corridors, some familiar and some new. Ruby can recognize some places such as the direction to the med bay and the shortcut to J’onn’s office. She can hear the medics during their shift change and she can tell that J’onn is at his desk. It bothers her a little that she can tell all of this. As they walk Ruby tries her best to memorize the path they are taking for any future escape plans. She squints at the sunlight when she follows Alex outside without realizing it. She cannot remember the last time she saw the sun. 

Alex informs her that they are going somewhere. Ruby walks over to the row of familiar black SUVs and heads to a rear passenger door but Alex does not stop. Ruby hustles to catch back up and gasps in pleased surprise when she sees Alex standing next to a beautiful shiny high powered Ducati motorcycle. Alex smiles as she hands her a helmet. Ruby whistles in appreciation and then stops herself. “My mom’s going to kill you!” she exclaims. She feels foolish then at the unintended irony and then fumbles to recover. “No, I didn’t mean literally…it’s just…she would never allow…if she knew…” She stops when Alex chuckles and puts the helmet on without waiting for permission. 

“Okay, so I am guessing you have probably never been on one of these before then, ya?” Ruby shakes her head “ _no_ ” and then Alex has to tighten the chin strap for her when the helmet spins lopsided.   
  
Alex explains how to mount a motorcycle as a passenger. “You can hold on to me or the side handles here” she shows her. Ruby acts very chill in an attempt to hide both her excitement and fear. She holds on to the side to avoid any pretense of affection. This lasts one gear change and then she is clinging to Alex like a marsupial baby with her eyes glued shut. She can feel Alex chuckle through her leathers. At the first stoplight Alex gently loosens her grip and re-positions her hands over Alex’s jacket front pockets instead. “Sometimes I like to breathe” she teases. Ruby wants to joke back that she should pretend to blow up a balloon but stays quiet. Alex takes her time then, driving with less acceleration and smoother gear changes that Ruby learns to anticipate.

She starts to enjoy it just a little. Alex takes a winding path and keeps touching her comms to agree with someone. Unexpectedly they are on a rural road driving slower than before. They head along a ridge overlooking National City. Ruby suspects that this might be where they are going to dispose of her and reminds herself to remain vigilant. The view is spectacular and Ruby cannot remember how long she has been indoors. She inhales deeply and then wrinkles her nose when she only gets diesel and leather. Ruby pulls back minutely from Alex to see better on both sides. She secretly plans how she will jump off the back of the motorcycle ( _tuck and roll_ ) if she notices a hit team waiting for her around a corner. Alex carefully lets go of the handlebars with one of her hands to confirm that Ruby is still holding on. She pats her hands reassuringly and then accelerates down into a valley, using a back road that will wind through an industrial park, then the past the pier and an old juvenile detention center with high fencing around it. She breathes easier when Alex speeds past all of this without stopping. Eventually they arrive back at LCorp and Alex just waits on her comms before gesturing Ruby to dismount. She can’t remember what the opposite of graceful is but Ruby does just that while fumbling off the bike, her bum cheeks numb and misjudging how far away the pavement is below her feet. Alex catches her just before she splays out on the ground, the tiniest of smirks on her face. 

Whatever goodwill she had started to feel towards the agent was now gone.  



	12. Chapter 12

Unlike their previous encounters, Lena is tense and angry at Alex and coolly distant with Ruby. Ruby misses the Lena who always tried too hard and is not sure how to interact with her. The ground beneath them has shifted. Just when Ruby has accepted that she might need help from the woman, Lena seems uninterested if not displeased by the girl and her presence. Alex has returned to find out more about Lex and his interactions with Sam, which was clearly a sore point for Lena. Lena shares that Lex had mostly been out of the house by the time Lena and Sam were teenagers, though he did spend time with them both whenever he would visit.

“Was this some experiment for him?” Alex asked, thinking about Maxwell Lord and his ability to create clones. “Was this something nefarious he was planning all along? Did he know about Sam's origins?” Lena cannot comment as she doesn’t know what to think and the pause grows uncomfortable for all of them. “Or was this just an assault on a young girl?” Alex asks bitterly, all pretext of treating Lena as a trustworthy ally is now gone. Lena is unimpressed with Alex and her offensive questions, and Ruby fears they will simply be asked to leave before they get any new information.

“Did he know?” she blurts out around the lump in her throat. Lena regards Ruby coolly before answering. “You are my legal, financial and moral responsibility now. We are _family_.”

  
Alex is struck by how unenthusiastic Lena sounds. It is so out of character for her compared to how she was behaving when Sam first disappeared. Something isn’t sitting right with Alex so she tells Ruby “Let's go. She is still in custody by the way.” “I am her legal guardian now” Lena says with authority “and have your DNA test to thank for that. She is exceptional and now we finally know why.” Lena is beaming at Ruby like a precious family heirloom retrieved from an auction. “It makes sense that her high IQ was not a result of all those flashcards Sam used to use” she says with an icy smile.

“She is staying with us for now, it’s in everyone’s best interests…” Alex tries to reach out to tap Ruby on the shoulder and get her attention, indicating that they are in fact, _leaving_. “Surely you don’t think you are going to keep a minor in a cell indefinitely. It’s cruel and inhuman.”

“Inhybrid, technically” Ruby attempts at making a joke, concerned at Lena’s renewed possessiveness and the negative energy rolling off of both women. Alex smiles slightly at that but Lena continues undeterred. “Now that I _know_ , I can make up for everything you have missed out on over the years. You can live at my family’s estate…” Ruby makes a choking noise at that.

“Not safe.” Alex declares briskly. “Then a boarding school, abroad somewhere. Think about it, it’s perfect. Hiding in plain sight and she will thrive there.” Lena is growing exasperated with Alex, and doesn’t appreciate the subtle irony of what she has just described. “I am not leaving her. With you.” Alex is adamant and in full agent mode. Ruby is out of her already limited patience with Lena and grows increasingly anxious the more the two women talk about her as though she is not there. “There are just too many unknown risks. I can explain them all to you later in more detail” Alex makes a knowing glance at Ruby “but for now she is coming with me.”

“Not if I have anything to say about it” Lilian appears flanked by heavily armed soldiers. Alex retrieves her concealed piece but is clearly out numbered. “Ruby,” Lilian coos gently. “Come see grandmother. I am _soooooo_ excited to get to know you better.” Lena stutters an interruption that she didn't know that this would happen, a denial that is squelched by Lilian. “You seem surprised to see me, Agent Danvers.” Something about Lilian Luthor always felt reptilian to Alex. She wondered if she would agree to providing a blood sample for her to review back at her DEO lab. To see what else it might reveal about the sociopathic Luthor traits. Alex considered taking one without consent just by using her fists. _For science_ Alex smiled grimly. “You can’t just run checks on Luthor DNA and not expect me to find out, now did you dear?” Alex swore quietly in a rare display of unprofessionalism.

Lilian turned her full attention then to Ruby, who was mesmerized by the older woman whose face has familiar features. The ones that are not from her mother’s side of the family. Ruby had always been told that she would be tall, and now she sees why. “Magnificent” Lilian purrs. Ruby was not sure who she was talking about as she stood there with helmet hair and sweat stained clothes. She also finds it a bit odd that this woman looks nothing like Lena.

“Who are you?” Ruby asks with a scowl. She has pieced it all together but still wants her proof. “I’m a Luthor, dear!” in a tone that reminded Ruby of melted butter. “Just. Like. You.”

“Come, dear. We have so much work to do.” “Like what?” Alex spits out. “Why, we need to save humanity from the alien threat, of course.” Lilian is smiling at Ruby who is struggling to understand if this is another kidnapping or rescue. They tend to look the same, lately. Ruby weighs what the older woman just said against what Alex has been saying from the beginning. Aliens versus humans. Who needs protecting from who. Then she thinks of Supergirl protecting her in the desert versus the agents who mistreated her afterwards. The mother that raised her and the mother who tried to kill her. Alex cautions her not to listen. Ruby is not sure who to listen to at this point.

Alex quietly commands Ruby to get behind her but the girl does not move, she remains fixed to the spot staring openly at the very tall woman idling towards her. “Ruby…” Alex tries again when Lilian waves at two agents who move in swiftly to grab Ruby and disarm Alex. Alex fires rounds which ricochet uselessly off of the armoured guards until she feels the air move around her violently. The agents fall over like toys and Lilian is suddenly pressed up against the farthest wall of the office, a look of surprised anger on her normally smug features. Alex finally notices Ruby standing in front of her, arms widespread and a shocked look on her face. “We need to go” Alex tells her. Ruby turns to look curiously at Alex. “Now.” Alex grabs one of Ruby’s wrists and pulls hard so that Ruby is suddenly flush against her. They walk backwards with Alex covering the room with her lone pistol. “We need a pickup at this location” she says to no one in particular. “Who are you…?” “Ssh. In two, no time to spare…” The soldiers have regained their composure and move aggressively towards them “just take them anyway you can “ Lilian is commanding them, and they move to switch the settings on their weapons.

“Copy” Alex hisses and suddenly her arm is around Ruby’s midsection and she takes three galloping steps to move up and over Lena’s balcony railing. Ruby barely has time to scream before she realizes that she is moving swiftly sideways and not downwards as expected. She makes the mistake of looking down and then quickly at Alex who is smiling in relief. “It's okay, I gotcha.” “You got me?” Ruby rasps out. “Who’s got you!!!” causing both Alex and Supergirl to chuckle. “Down there…” “I can’t stay…” “It’s fine, just down there.” Supergirl puts them down in an alley miles away from the downtown core and barely nods at Alex before soaring upwards again. “Thanks” Alex whispers, though Ruby is not sure why as Supergirl is already out of sight. Alex smiles for some reason and Ruby is convinced she heard someone say “you’re welcome as always”.

They enjoy five awkward minutes of not talking about anything that just occurred and then a black tinted SUV pulls into the end of the alley. Ruby gratefully jumps in the backseat without bothering to confirm that it is in fact, the good guys. Who even knows at this point.  
  



	13. Chapter 13

The SUV ride turns into multiple SUV rides, with many stops along the way. Ruby overhears them refer to them as _heat checks_. She may or may not have dozed off, at least not that she would admit to. When they finally stop for good, they have arrived at a different DEO base than she remembers. 

  
Ruby is ushered in through a pedestrian door off of the garage bay and does not get a chance to feel the sun or breathe the air. Still, she is happy with the chance to finally stand upright. It takes a bit for Ruby to catch on that they have gone to all this excess for her benefit. To keep her safe. She appreciates the effort that they are making to keep her safe, but then quickly realizes that someone must have screwed up badly for them to take all these additional steps.

  
She decides to assert her dominance in this situation and walks over to inspect the contents of the break room fridge while the agents are still briefing. “Hey!” one of them challenges her and Alex quietly responds “just let it go”. She turns up her nose at the contents that seem to be there for her benefit ( _though it is impressively stocked_ , she admits to herself) and takes an apple from someone’s personal lunch kit. “Wut?!” she says innocently, her mouth full with a too big bite. “Just don’t be an asshole, alright? Not today.” Alex chastises. Ruby feels sufficiently chagrined and considers putting the half eaten apple back, then reconsiders as that would likely be viewed as an asshole maneuver. It also dawns on her that she is still completely dependent on these agents for her survival, and that this fridge can just as easily be un-stocked. 

  
She swallows finally and then nods in agreement when the DEO Agent who seems to be in charge offers her a tour. This base seems smaller from the inside, somehow. which might just be an illusion. She is shown the locked rooms that are explicitly off limits to her. She does not tell them that she can hear the Comms Center behind one of them, and the agent who is briefing back to the DEO leadership about her safe arrival. She can keep pretending that it is in fact, _soundproof_. 

  
She is shown her bedroom. It is really just a set of adjoining cells, one with a proper bed and the others appear to be hastily organized living space with an assortment of tables, chairs and a double wide metal locker. It is all clearly military issued. The cell with the bed has a door draped with an opaque shower curtain that can be left open or drawn closed, giving her privacy to change but still allowing the agents to do routine wellness checks. The bed is an old metal bunk but still a complete upgrade from the slab she has been sleeping on so far. She notices the suitcases with her personal effects from her old house, and then she tears up when she sees Sebastian waiting for her on the pillow. Someone took a lot of care to rescue her stuffed rabbit from her old room and bring it here. She was touched but still wasn’t comfortable in showing emotion, so she said nothing about the kind gesture. 

  
“We’ll leave you alone so you can get changed into something more familiar” the agent says before leaving, closing the door behind him. She picks up Sebastian the Rabbit and holds him to her face, taking in his familiar smell. She then inspects him carefully for any DEO implants that might be used to monitor her. She finds two.

\- - -

  
Alex’s DEO colleagues are noticeably subdued when Alex finally returns to her lab. “Ruby is part Luthor and Part Reign.” J’onn says with concern.

“She is not defined by her family.” Winn states with gravitas. “She is also part human. She was raised by Sam, that must count for something?”

J’onn is his usual gruff realist. “The last I saw they weren’t getting along very well.”

“Well, she defended me just now.” Alex interjects. “She could have left with the Luthors but didn’t. Sam and Ruby love and need each other, and Ruby is likely the key to helping Sam.”

“Genetically speaking” Winn counters.

“Yes, that and the fact that Ruby is clearly tied in to Reign’s humanity.”

“We don’t know if Ruby will turn out like either parent.” Winn says morosely.

“She’s a good kid.” Alex offers.

”Not really. She has likely always been a petty criminal – remember how she got caught hacking?”

  
“For the right side!”

  
“That’s exactly what Lex would say.” J’onn chimes in. 

  
“She hasn’t done anything wrong!” 

  
“That’s because we didn’t give her the chance! You had a front row seat to see the devastation she is capable of.” 

  
“It was all done in self preservation.”

  
“Well, we need to do what we can to keep her onside. Before whatever happened to her mother happens to her as well.”

What goes unsaid is what may still happen to Kara. 

“If Lilian knows, we need to hide her from Lex.” Lucy breezes into the lab, uninvited and unannounced. Alex is pretty sure she knows why this visit is part of Lane’s packed schedule. “What were you thinking?” the major curtly addresses Alex. “Why did you take her with you?”

“I needed leverage” Alex responds matter-of-factly.

“Well, she is compromised now.”

“She probably always was.” Alex admits defeatedly. 

“Well, we should run some more tests after this latest incident. What are we finding, is this a virus, are they contagious, was this always part of their genetic code?” No one has any answers, which does not improve Lucy’s mood. “How did her powers even work? She was wearing the dampener, yeah?”

“Yes, she still had it on.” Everyone looks at Alex then to explain. She quietly continues. “Apparently Kara turned it down. When we wouldn’t use the sunlamps.” Lucy inhales so sharply they can hear it. Hank uncrosses and then re-crosses his arms. “I didn’t know” she answers the unasked question. “I should have checked.” Alex rubs the hair behind her ears, a nervous tic that thankfully only Winn is aware of. “It was…an oversight” It was, in fact, careless. She was…tired…and rushed…and it was a tactical…

“Do we need to worry about your sister?” Lucy interrupts her thoughts. “No.” Alex lies. “She is on board. Completely. No need to worry.” They can all tell that Alex is lying but no one wants to challenge her on it in front of the others.

“Good. Because we will need her to help assess the girl’s powers and help her learn to control them. Or help us understand how to keep her under control.” Lucy is looking intently at Alex, as though considering something unpleasant.

“I’ll talk to her” Alex reassures them. Another fight. Another thing on Alex’s plate. Another waste of time, no doubt. Alex swallows around the lump that has been there since Ruby started crying in front of her. Kara’s words echo in her head.

_We trusted you. You were supposed to look out for us_.

It was a good thing Alex hadn’t eaten.

She felt sick.


End file.
